The Lion and the Elephant. Charles John Andersson
of it.
"Whilst the bones cracked under the jaws of the two powerful combatants, their claws strewed the glade with each others' entrails, and their roars,
THE LION.
at times subdued, and at others loud, told of their wrath and their sufferings.
"At the commencement of the battle, the lioness was crouched on her belly, and until its termination she evinced, by the wagging of her tail, the pleasure she experienced in seeing these two lions slaughter- ing each other.
"When all was over, she advanced cautiously up to the corpses, smelt them, then retreated, and that without replying to the somewhat gross epithet (though applicable enough to the occasion) which Mohammed could not refrain from casting at her, in lieu of a bullet, which was out of his power, his gun, as I said, having fallen to the ground."
The period of gestation with the lioness is about four months (French naturalists say one hundred and eight days), and she usually brings forth her young in the most solitary, inaccessible places. The cubs are from two to four in number, according to the age and strength of the mother, but commonly there are only two, a male and a female. At their birth they are nearly as large as an adult female domestic cat, and their eyes are open, but they continue helpless for several weeks. When newly whelped, the fur is of a woolly or frizzled texture, the shade of colour a little darker than at a more mature age; and they are distinctly clouded or brushed with deep brown, and have a line of the same dark colour running along the centre of the back. About the commencement of the second year these markings begin to disappear. Whilst the cubs are young, they are harm-
CUBS.
less, pretty, and playful. Many are said to die during dentition, more especially females; and this circumstance probably accounts for the dis- parity observable between the sexes; male lions, it is calculated, being one third more numerous than females.
"During the first days succeeding the birth of the cubs," says Gerard, who gives us very valuable information respecting the habits of lions during the breeding season, "the mother never quits them for a moment, leaving the father to provide for their wants. It is not until they have attained the age of three months, and the crisis of dentition is passed, that she weans them, absenting herself from the lair during several hours each day, and supply- ing them with the flesh of sheep carefully divided into small pieces.
"The lion, whose character, when arrived at mature age, is very grave, is not fond of remaining with his 'children,' who tire him with their gambols; and in order, therefore, to enjoy his rest undisturbed, as also to be in readiness to come to the aid of his family should it be required, he makes for himself a lair in the vicinity.
"At the age of four to five months, the cubs follow the mother to the skirts of the wood where the lion brings them food.
"At six months, and during a dark night, the whole family change their abode; and from this time up to the period when the cubs separate from their parents they are constantly on the move.
"At eight months, to a year, after their birth,
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the cubs commence attacking the flocks of sheep and goats which, during the day-time, chance to approach the neighbourhood of their lair. Some- times they attack cattle; but they are still so in- experienced that it often happens they wound ten where they kill a single one; and the father, in this case, is necessitated to interfere.
"It is not until the young lions are two years old that they are able to slay a horse, an ox, or a camel by a single grasp of the jaws at the throat, and to leap over the fence, two metres in height, that surrounds the 'Douar.'
"The period between the first and second year is truly ruinous to the inhabitants. In fact, the leonine family not only kill for their subsistence, but to acquire the art of killing. It is easy to un- derstand what such an apprenticeship must cost those who furnish the materials.
"At the age of three years the cubs leave the parents, that they may propagate their species; but it is not until their eighth year that they attain to their full growth. They have then acquired all their powers, and the males, who are one-third larger than the females, have full manes.
"Whilst the cubs are in their infancy the mother guards them with the tenderest care, and for their support is more daring and ferocious than usual; making excursions with greater boldness, and de- stroying every animal that falls in her way, which she afterwards carries to her progeny."
By all accounts, moreover, the lion himself is never so much to be dreaded as when his partner
ABSTRACTION OF CUBS
has a young family. "He then knows no fear," writes Gordon Gumming, " and will face a thousand men. A remarkable instance of this kind came under my own observation, which confirmed the reports 1 had before heard from the natives. One day, when out elephant-hunting in the territory of the 'Baseleka,' accompanied by 250 men, I was astonished suddenly to behold a majestic lion slowly and steadily advancing towards us with a dignified step and undaunted bearing, the most noble and imposing that can be conceived. Lashing his tail from side to side, and growling haughtily, his ter- ribly expressive eye resolutely fixed upon us, and displaying a show of ivory well calculated to inspire terror amongst the timid 'Becuanas,' he approached. A headlong flight of the 250 men was the imme- diate result; and, in the confusion of the moment, four couple of my dogs, which they had been lead- ing, were allowed to escape in their couples. These instantly faced the lion, who, finding that by his bold bearing he had succeeded in putting his enemies to flight, now became anxious for the safely of his little family, with which the lioness was re- treating in the background. Facing about, he fol- lowed alter them with a haughty and independent step, growling fiercely at the dogs which trotted along on either side of him."
In Southern Africa, the cubs, when of a tender age, are not un frequently abstracted from the den during the absence of the mother; but the act is accompanied witli much danger; for, should the lioness return whilst the man is in the ac; ot de-
THE LION.
priving her of her progeny, or should she meet him whilst bearing them away, the chances are he will have to pay dearly for his temerity.
In Northern Africa, again, where, from the ravages the lion commits amongst the herds of the natives, every man's hand is against him, and he, in con- sequence, is rendered more than usually savage, the act of robbing the lioness of her whelps—one of somewhat common occurrence—is rendered doubly hazardous. The manner of proceeding on these occasions is, Gérard tells us, as follows:—
"The situation of the lair having been ascer- tained, the movements of the mother arc watched by a scout from a neighbouring tree or high rock, and when she is seen to absent herself from the den, an Arab glides into it, and, after wrapping his burnous around the cubs to stifle their cries, he carries them away; a horseman is commonly near at hand, who places the captives before him, and rides off at speed.
"But thus to deprive the lioness of her young," Gerard goes on to say, "is very perilous, and often attended with fatal results;" in proof of which he cites the following instance:—
"During the month of March, 1840, a lioness deposited her cubs in a wood called 'El Guèla,' situated in the mountains of Mezioun. The chief of the country, Zeiden, made application for assist- ance to Sedek-ben-Oumbark, sheik of the tribe Beni-Fourraz, his neighbour; and at the appointed day thirty men from each of those tribes assembled in the defile of Mezioun at first dawn.
ARAB STORY OF A LION.
"These sixty Arabs, after having surrounded the thickets, gave several shouts, and as the lioness did not appear, they entered it and took possession of her two cubs.
"They were retiring noisily, imagining they had nothing more to fear from the mother, when tho Sheik, Sedek, who was somewhat behind the rest, perceived the beast coming out of the wood and making directly towards him.
"He instantly